


i want to love

by hereforme



Category: Pentagon (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Attempt at Humor, Fluff, M/M, Musicians, just pretend it's a bad sitcom, this is so self-indulgent im not even sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:41:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,220
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25533034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hereforme/pseuds/hereforme
Summary: Hwitaek fixates on something new every time he's deep in the grind of a new project. It's a coping mechanism, really. Last time, it was an indoor plant. This time, it's the cute barista from the new coffee shop downstairs.(Or, how Hwitaek embarrasses his way into the first date.)
Relationships: Jo Jinho | Jino/Lee Hwitaek | Hui
Comments: 35
Kudos: 61





	i want to love

**Author's Note:**

> ive been trying to finish a heavy jinhui wip for a month & finally (begrudgingly) realized that the plot just isn't going to work out... wrote this fluffy piece to cope

In hindsight, Hwitaek should have seen this coming. He really should have. His wallet being _significantly_ thinner last week should have been the last straw. But alas, here he is — lying on the floor, arms crossed over his chest like he's in his coffin (not as far from the truth as you'd think) with his heart running at the BPM of Twice's _Signal._

Shinwon, bless him, asks, "Should I bring you to the hospital, hyung?" He's leaning over Hwitaek from the couch, face scrunched up in either worry or an admirable attempt at trying not to laugh out loud. Hwitaek hates how he still looks handsome from this angle.

"No, I'm doing breathing exercises," Hwitaek exhales, "The palpitations should be gone in a minute. This is actually quite relaxing." He smiles to prove it, but it only comes out as a grimace because _oh my god_ , _are the lights blinking in time with my heartbeat?_

"Right," Shinwon leans back with a sigh. The leather squelches with the shift of weight and Hwitaek would laugh if he could. "If you overdosing on coffee is the only time you get to lie down, then that just means you're overworking yourself. Again."

"Yes, yes, what's new?" Hwitaek rolls his eyes and the pain is almost worth it, "I'm almost done with the songs anyway. And—" It's about time he mentions it, "—the barista downstairs is really cute." The studio is tiny and with him taking up all the space on the floor, Shinwon's feet are uncomfortably close. Naturally, he gets kicked right in the head when Shinwon jerks up. Curse the model's long ass legs.

"I fucking knew it," Shinwon says with no regard to his groans of pain, "Changgu and I had a bet."

Hwitaek sits up and rests his back on the couch, _away_ from Shinwon's feet, "A bet?"

"Yeah, on what your new quarterly coping mechanism was." He scrunches his nose, "I see you look longingly into the coffee shop when we pass by sometimes. It was kinda obvious."

"Hey," Hwitaek raises a finger, "Their coffee's actually pretty good." Not that he's tried anything more than their latte, "And Jinho's _really_ cute."

"Jinho, huh?" Shinwon makes a mental note, "Asked him out yet?" And before Hwitaek can respond, "Obviously not."

He whines, "I can't ask him out."

Shinwon crosses his arms, "Why not?"

Having to crane his neck up to meet Shinwon's eye is even more straining now than when they're vertical so Hwitaek hoists himself up the couch, just in time to grumble at the question. He gestures at the air as if the answer is obvious but decides against hearing whatever insult the other will throw at him, "Because—" he blubbers, "I haven't dated since like..." the rest gets stuck in his throat.

Shinwon tilts his head, waiting, "... since?" It's amazing how self-incriminating his hyung could be.

".... a while," is all Hwitaek can answer.

"Right," Shinwon snorts, "But weren't you at least seeing that guy, like," he racks his head, "oof... two years ago?"

"Hyojong? God, no," he shakes his head, "He has a girlfriend. They're like soulmates," Hwitaek flashes back to all the times he's third-wheeled for the couple, "And he's not even my type. So... yeah..." Up until now, Hwitaek's focus had only been establishing himself in the industry and now that he's out of the woods, he has no idea how dating works anymore. To be honest, it's a miracle he even has friends outside of music at this point. It isn't so easy when you don't have classroom lectures and group papers to form your friendships for you.

Shinwon puts his head down, hands clasped together like's he's in prayer. The mood turns serious, "This explains a lot, hyung." Hwitaek knows _exactly_ what the younger is going to say next and gets ready, "This means you haven't been la-"

A pillow hits him right in the face.

"That's not what matters right now!" The effort it takes Hwitaek to raise his voice makes the lights blink again. He's reminded of the faulty stoplight down by the corner. He should really report that to the city.

Shinwon deserved that one, but it doesn't stop the peal of laughter from escaping his mouth. He throws the pillow back, but it bounces off the older and ends up hitting him again, which, okay, maybe he deserved that one too. "To be clear, this barista knows you exist, right? You're not just creepily staring at him while he works or something?"

Hwitaek recounts all the times he's been caught looking at Jinho for too long, which was, well, a lot, "Are those supposed to be mutually exclusive or?" Interestingly though, Jinho would hold his gaze every time, like it was some sort of challenge, "You know, I think we're actually friends."

Shinwon claps his hands, "Great, you have his number?"

There's silence, broken only by the sheer force of Shinwon rolling his eyes and Hwitaek getting hit on the arm, "Oh my god, just ask for his number!"

Hwitaek immediately shakes his head, prompting the younger to roll his eyes again, "No, that'd be weird. Do people still do that? And, you know me, I don't even look at my phone."

Shinwon lets out a groan in frustration, "Obviously when you get his number, you text him, woo him, and ask him out so you don’t die of a caffei-" he pauses, "Never mind. You're just being a coward,” he says, tone accusatory.

Hwitaek gapes, his voice going up a note, "I am not."

* * *

Yes, yes, he is.

In his defense, it's not exactly Hwitaek's fault. It's just that, Jinho, that sweet cinnamon roll, has been the paragon of calm and cool ever since their first interaction while he’s just been awkwardness in shape of a man. In the two months that the coffee shop has opened, Hwitaek has probably made a fool of himself a total of... thirty-six times. Not that bad considering the more questionable things he's done while sleep-deprived and swamped in work, but it's thirty-six more than he'd like. And yet, Jinho would just pretend that nothing strange happened, eyes twinkling without saying a word, letting the embarrassment stew in Hwitaek until the red on his face could work as a stop sign. Hwitaek keeps coming back though. (The owner, Hongseok, has never been happier.)

The first time they met, it was past midnight _at Deja Brew_ and business was slow. Hwitaek, finally getting cabin fever from being in his cramped studio for so long, went down to the cafe hoping to people watch and maybe get a muffin, as a treat. But as he walked up the wooden counter, he got Jo Jinho, angel on Earth, wearing a white button-up and maroon apron smiling at him instead, "Hi! Welcome to _Deja Brew_. What can I get for you?"

Hwitaek smiled back reflexively, but his mind was completely blank. Well, not blank, but... _Wow, he's cute. And short. Not that he's cute because he's short because I hate it when people say that about me but he's actually shorter than me and that's just really cute wait what the fuck? when was the last time I found someone attractive? oh god I shouldn't have come here in my slippers am I allowed to tell him he's cute no he probably knows is flirting with baristas appropr_ — "Sir? Do you still need time to think?"

Hwitaek considered walking out and never going back in, but it was hard to move when Jinho was looking at him so intently. _The customer service here is intense_. "Uh, I'll get... a medium latte. Yeah."

"Iced or hot?" Jinho asked, hand poised over the register.

" _You're hot_ ," his mind provided and only when Jinho barked a laugh did Hwitaek realize that he said it out loud, "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to—" It was a blessing there was no one else within earshot.

Jinho was still laughing and the corners of Hwitaek's mouth rose on instinct. _What was he doing?_ "It's alright," Jinho said after regaining his composure, "So... a medium latte, hot. Can I get your name?"

"Hwitaek," he said, not trusting himself to say more, hoping he'd salvaged the situation. He kept his eyes focused on the huge fern beside him instead.

The rest of the transaction went smoothly by comparison. He didn't even falter when their fingers brushed against each other as Jinho handed the change. Hwitaek's heart was pounding though. (That bit was foreshadowing.)

He took a seat at the farthest corner by the window, waiting for his drink. From his spot, he could see the street and the few people still awake passing by. Mostly college students stumbling home from the bars, the occasional nightshifter, and a couple random people in their pajamas heading out for a midnight snack. More importantly, he could see Jinho making his drink at the counter — just barely though, bobbing in and out between the towering cases of coffee beans in display.

Hwitaek tried not to be obvious about it but too late, Jinho had noticed. The barista smiled before slipping out of sight again, so that must have been a win. Or more realistically, that was just Jinho's default expression (and for that, _Deja Brew_ had excellent customer service).

He expected to hear his name called, but Jinho brought his drink to him instead, "Enjoy," there was a cute foam cat smiling from the steaming cup.

"Thank you," Hwitaek looked up to say, but Jinho had already turned to greet a new customer. Hwitaek beamed at the cat instead, taking out his phone to take a picture and send to his group chat. (“ _oh so u wont reply to our messages but will send this??? ok grandpa_ ") He spent the rest of the time writing lyrics and brainstorming concepts, fingers tapping to the [song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeI6an1Fy6E) playing over the speaker.

When he got up to leave, eyes already drooping, Jinho was at the opposite end, back turned and wiping down tables. Some other guy, with half-brown and half-red hair, was at the register counting money. They made eye contact on his way out and Hwitaek swears he saw him smirk.

Once he got home and reached in his pocket for his keys, Hwitaek found his crumpled-up receipt instead. He had forgotten to take it the first time so Jinho placed it with his drink. Now that he was actually looking at it, he could see streaks of something written with marker.

Hwitaek unfolded it, smoothing out the creases, biting at his bottom lip.

 _You're hot too :) -_ _Jinho_ was scribbled at the back in tiny font. Hwitaek let out a squeal that he would never admit to. This almost, _almost,_ made up for the fact that he left his keys in the studio.

* * *

After that meet cute, Hwitaek found himself returning to the coffee shop almost daily, making it his last run before going home for the day. Never mind the effects of drinking coffee late at night. (“ _Why didn’t you just order some hot chocolate??_ ” Shinwon almost kicks him again.) It was always worth it to see Jinho and whatever latte art he had for him that day.

By week two point five though, Jinho offered to make his drink decaf.

"Oh, yes, please" Hwitaek answered, "That would be great actually. Don't know why I didn't think of that sooner."

Jinho only smiled, tapping away at the register, but looked as if he wanted to say more.

"What is it?" Hwitaek ventured, leaning the slightest bit in.

Jinho peered up at him, looking shy while the lights reflected in his eyes. It would have been romantic, except—"You look like you don't get any sleep."

And there goes embarrassment #12. If he could, Hwitaek would simply stop existing at that moment.

“You’re not supposed to insult the customers, Jinho,” Hong _-something_ (the rest of his name was wiped from the name tag and Hwitaek never bothered asking) said from somewhere behind Jinho. He was counting the take-out cups on the floor and only the red half of his hair was visible.

Jinho bit his lip and looked down. He almost seemed guilty, but his shoulders were shaking, “So, a hot medium latte, decaf?”

Instead of Jinho, it was Hong-something who brought him his drink (there was a foam smiley face this time), and a cupcake. “It’s on the house,” he winked.

Hwitaek would have been charmed if not for how intimidating he found the other barista. He always had his sleeves rolled up to reveal strong arms that other customers would whisper about and smirked at Hwitaek in a way that reminded him of his kindergarten bully.

He muttered a thanks and turned to look for Jinho who—

* * *

“Are we just skipping the part where he said you were hot too?” Shiwon exclaims, “You didn’t do anything about it? _He_ didn’t do anything about it? What the fuck?”

Hwitaek raises his hands in defense, “What was I supposed to do?”

To be fair, Hwitaek had gone back to the coffee shop two days later (not a day later, you know, to be cool) and planned to ask Jinho out. But all that went down the drain when he found himself face to face with the ~~sun~~ man. Unlike the other day, Jinho had his hair pushed back to reveal his forehead which _wow_ , and somehow, that was just it for whatever courage Hwitaek had scrounged up, so he ordered another latte instead.

“That’s it,” Shinwon gets up and grabs Hwitaek by the arm, “We are going to the coffee shop right now.”

Hwitaek digs his feet to the floor, “Nooo, we can’t. I look like shit.”

“Okay, I’m not implying anything, hyung, but this is what you look like every day,” Shinwon makes one big pull and Hwitaek is brought to his feet, “Let’s go.”

After about ten minutes of grumbling and some time spent checking their faces through the hallway mirrors, Shinwon and Hwitaek make their way down to _Deja Brew_. Instead of the usual quiet Hwitaek’s grown fond of, the coffee shop is filled and bustling with people.

The lights seem to be brighter than before and there's a mini stage set up at the corner. When Hwitaek peers in, he sees Hong-something singing on stage.

“Looks like they have an event,” Hwitaek says, already turning away.

Shinwon, as expected, drags him in.

Jinho’s nowhere to be found among the crowd, so Shinwon takes his height to his advantage and swivels around looking for, as described, someone short and cute. Hwitaek, trying to calm himself down, focuses on the stage instead. _Huh_ , Hong-something sounds good. Sounds amazing, actually. He’s singing a soft ballad, eyes closed with lips close to the mic. Hwitaek can see the love-struck expressions on everyone in the room without even looking.

“Sure he’s not the one you’re swooning over?” Shinwon says from beside him, neck already stiff from peering all over the room.

Hong-something finishes and preens at the applause thrown his way.

Hwitaek snorts, “No thanks.”

To their surprise, Hong-something makes his way towards them.

“If it isn’t our midnight regular, Hwitaek!” He says, grinning, “It’s the first time I’ve seen you this early.”

“Ah, well,” Hwitaek rubs at his nape, thinking of an excuse. _Wait, how does he know my name?_

Shinwon, bless him, brings out his hand, “I’m Shinwon, he’s told me a lot about this place!”

Hong-something shakes his hand, “Really?” he turns to Hwitaek with _that_ smirk on his face, “That’s great,” he laughs, “My name’s Hongseok by the way. Jinho and I are co-owners.”

“Oh?” Hwitaek perks up at that, which Hongseok seemed to expect judging from the smile on his face. Shinwon almost face palms.

“Yeah... Give me a sec,” Hongseok moves to the back and disappears through the employee door. Hwitaek tries to escapes in that time but Shinwon keeps him firmly in place.

Hongseok comes back with Jinho in tow, “Look who’s here!”

Instead of his uniform, Jinho is wearing a pink oversized sweater and Hwitaek has to suppress the smile on his face from growing any bigger, “Hello, Hwitaek,” he waves, “And Shinwon.” _Oh no, he has sweater paws_.

Shinwon smiles, “Hi, it’s really nice to meet you, Jinho.” His gaze suddenly shifts to somewhere behind the two baristas, “I think I see someone I know; I’ll go say hello.”

“What?” Hwitaek blurts out because he is _obviously_ lying, the tone of his voice not the least bit convincing, but Shinwon just gives him a thumbs up and walks away. He can't help but feel betrayed.

(In the ten seconds that he’s seen them interact, Shinwon decides that having Hwitaek suffer for a while longer might just be better.)

Like always, Jinho just smiles with a knowing glint in his eyes while Hongseok outright laughs. Hwitaek doesn’t know if he should be grateful or not that Hongseok hasn’t made up a lame excuse and left as well. _Why did Shinwon have to make it so weird?_

Hwitaek clears his throat, “So, do you guys do this kind of thing often?”

"Yeah, we have it every other Saturday,” Jinho says proudly, “It’s really great for the community, I think.”

“I didn’t know,” Hwitaek admits, “It’s amazing though,” he looks around. Before _Deja Brew_ , this spot had been a salad bar.

"The posters are everywhere,” Hongseok points out, “We get noise complaints every time too," he says it like it's a good thing.

To prove his point, there's one such poster on the window behind them. Okay, so maybe Hwitaek has been hyperfixating on Jinho and his cute latte art a bit too much. _No need to point it out, Hongseok_.

“Hongseok and I are musicians actually,” Jinho pulls at his sleeves, “I’m a vocal trainer and Hong—”

“—I just sing on the side. Jinho’s something else,” Hongseok says, arms reaching over Jinho's shoulders like a father showing off his son. _Why was I afraid of him again?_

Hwitaek absolutely glows, "Are you going to sing tonight, Jinho?”

Jinho shakes his head, “No, not tonight.” It might just be the light, but there’s a blush forming on his cheeks.

“He has a sore throat,” Hongseok rolls his eyes like he’s disappointed in Jinho’s actions, “You do music too, right? I see you writing lyrics.”

“Yeah,” Hwitaek turns sheepish, but a voice in his head eerily similar to Shinwon tells him that this is the time to gloat, “I’ve produced some songs. [Do you know… _neoreul saranghaneun jjijiri jjijiri_?](https://youtu.be/qTrwBSYntsQ?t=106)” He does a mini version of the shoot dance, singing to _Shine_.

“Oh, _Nayana_!” Jinho exclaims right away and Hongseok bursts out laughing. A group of students from behind them turn around to see what’s going on. Hwitaek smiles through the pain.

“That’s… not it,” Hongseok wheezes out.

Jinho goes red and Hwitaek supposes there’s some sort of win in them both being embarrassed for once, “Sorry, I got excited. I promise I know the song!”

Hwitaek just laughs, “It’s alright.” _God, he's in so deep_.

“I’ll make you a coffee to make it up,” Jinho offers with a wide smile.

“I think we’ve given him enough coffee,” Hongseok counters, “How about some beer?”

Hwitaek telepathically thanks Hongseok because there was no way he was going to survive another coffee in him tonight, “I’ll get Shinwon.”

Throughout the night, Hwitaek learns that Jinho likes wine, not beer; Hongseok speaks Chinese when he’s tipsy; and that Jinho _can rap_.

It only makes him more curious about the other’s singing, so when he gets home, Hwitaek searches every iteration of Jo Jinho he can think of but finds nothing.

(Shinwon sends a _very wordy_ text message when he realizes Hwitaek never asked for Jinho’s phone number, but it doesn’t hit as hard because it takes Hwitaek three days to open it.)

* * *

Hwitaek, in hopes of living till he’s a hundred (and because Jinho has begun taking less shifts), doesn't get a coffee as often anymore, usually stopping by for a snack instead. Hongseok adds in a plate of random vegetables in his every order and it just reminds him of the sad salad bar that _Deja Brew_ replaced.

He makes sure to come to every single open mic after that though, spending each night talking to Jinho.

They bond over music. Hwitaek talks about his 10-year-old audio interface, his first song, and how he purposely flunked his college entrance exams so he could pursue music instead. Jinho tells him about all the times he ran away from home so he could attend vocal lessons, how fulfilling it is to see his students improve, and the time he grew 14cm during winter break. (Unrelated, he knows, but Jinho had to share it.)

But despite all this, Hwitaek still hasn’t heard Jinho sing. The older (“ _Are you sure you’re a year older than me?_ ” “ _Do you want to see my birth certificate? I bring it with me, you know._ ”) has long been cured of his sore throat, but he keeps his mouth mum, just for fun. Hwitaek’s attempts of asking for _anything_ from Hongseok all fail too.

The answer comes in the form Kang Hyunggu, Hwitaek’s protégé slash baby, who he brings one night after the younger’s incessant pleas to _finally meet Jinho hyung_ get too much. It’s a mistake though because the moment they meet, Hyunggu turns his charms up to 11 and flirts like his life depends on it, to which Jinho just balks at.

Hyunggu makes up for it though, when he _emails_ him a Youtube link to _Magazine Ho_ the following morning, with the message: “ _if u don’t ask him out I will_ _😈_ _”_

Hwitaek spends all day bingeing every video, taking extra time with the one where Jinho is dancing, instead of singing.

* * *

The next open mic, Hwitaek breaks down, "I have a confession to make."

Jinho tilts his head to the side, “Oh?” crossing his arms. He’s wearing another oversized sweater, blue this time.

“I found your Youtube," Hwitaek says slowly, as if he was admitting to a crime.

Jinho bursts out laughing and Hwitaek wonders if he said anything wrong, “Not what I expected, but okay. I would've told you about it if you asked," he smiles, " Or maybe not. What did you think?”

“Well..." Hwitaek gets ready, it's now or never, "Can we please, please collab? I would love to write a song for you,” Hwitaek asks, clasping his hands and blinking in an attempt to be cute. He may or may not listen to Jinho's covers every day.

Jinho laughs and his shoulders squeeze together in the way they always do when he gets complimented, making him look even smaller, “Actually... I write songs too.”

“What? Why didn’t you say?” Hwitaek leans forward in excitement, and they couldn’t be closer. Jinho’s eyes still sparkle up close.

“Just didn’t want to mention it, Mr. Bigshot.” Jinho jokes, “But maybe…” his gaze slips down before meeting Hwitaek’s eyes again. 

Hwitaek gulps, “Maybe…?”

“I’ll do it if you sing next month,” Jinho grins, leaning back and looking towards the stage. Hwitaek lets out the breath he's been holding. “Gotta know you have the pipes to back up your skills,” Jinho bumps their knees together and Hwitaek's heart skips a beat.

“It’s a deal.”

* * *

Hwitaek chooses _I Like You_ by Day6 because he’s a sap and because Shinwon and Hyunggu sent him about 60 different confession songs. When he tells Hongseok the song choice, the barista fake gags but sneaks him a shot of soju right after, “Good luck.”

He’s arranged it to better fit his voice and to be honest, he isn’t _that_ nervous. If there’s anything Hwitaek is confident about, it’s his music.

_Like you_

_I tried holding it back_

_But I can't anymore_

_Now I can tell you_

_I want to love_

Hwitaek tries not to stare straight at Jinho, but he’s where his eyes drift to each time. His friends aren’t here, but he can feel Shinwon cringing from beyond the veil. Hongseok’s just watching him with a shit-eating grin. He tries to maintain his composure — what's important is that Jinho is smiling, swaying to the beat of the song. When they meet eyes, Hwitaek feels like butter.

But, when he gets down from the stage, Jinho looks like he’s trying to suppress a laugh.

Hwitaek goes cold, heart sinking, “Was it bad?”

Jinho shakes his head, “No, you were amazing,” he takes a step closer and Hwitaek almost steps back, “It’s just that Hyunggu sent me a text.” _Jinho smells like strawberries._

There’s glass shattering in Hwitaek’s head, "He has your number?”

"Yeah,” Jinho nods absentmindedly, patting at his pockets for his phone, “He asked for it when we met."

"What?" Hwitaek stares. _That kid._

"What?" Jinho says back, eyes looking up from his phone, “Here, look.” He holds it out for Hwitaek to see.

> “ _hi jinho hyung, i know you enjoy seeing hwitaekkie hyung make a fool of himself but please ask him out already!!! i promise he'll be an even bigger fool once u start dating!!! i ENSURE it!! PLEASE_ ”

Jinho is grinning when Hwitaek’s done reading, “So,” he tiptoes to close the distance. Hwitaek’s ears start to burn, “Do you want to get coffee some time?”

* * *

(Hyunggu was right.)

**Author's Note:**

> EDIT: check out @ptgficfest on twt and hmu too (@behopefool) !
> 
> ... so that was my first ptg fic... and first fic in general after like 5 years... which isn't saying much but heh  
> it was only meant to be a drabble & im p much still a baby universe so i hope yall like it :)
> 
> (signal's bpm is 208, rip hui)  
> ((decaf coffee still has caffeine it's not a plot hole<3 and don't drink beer when u're palpitating <33))  
> (((yes jinho asked for hwitaek's name even tho they don't need it for their orders)))


End file.
